Finding A Way - a Fairy Tail Fanfiction - Book Three of Three
by allysonntcerawrs
Summary: After loosing Lucy for the seventh or so time, they somehow find a way to save her, but in order to do so, will Natsu and Grey have to go to the extremes? What will they do? Will Natsu finally confess his love? Will Lucy feel the same, if they ever manage to find her? You'll have to read on... In Finding A Way, book Three of Three in the 'Second Chances' Trilogy!


**I do not own Fairy Tail... I don't.**

**Hiro Mashima does.**

**I do not own any of the characters, spells (excpet the new ones Lucy uses), or thought that the characters may or may not possibly have during the duration of the story.**

**That being said, I do own this story, because I made it up, so don't say otherwise. **

**Enjoy 'Finding A Way' - The Third and FINAL book of the 'Second Chances' Trilogy**

**Lucy's POV**

Walking with Lucy through the forest, I can tell something's bothering her.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

She doesn't say anything, she just keeps walking.

"Aren't you going to answer me?" I ask.

Nothing.

"Lucy…" I say in a deep, commanding voice.

"You know perfectly well what happens when you try to be scary Lucy… don't do it again" Lucy says to me.

"Well, that's because you won't talk to me! What's wrong with you? You seem upset…" I say.

"Look, you wouldn't understand. You're young and naïve. Stop trying to understand" Lucy says continuing to walk forward.

I stop walking. "You're right…"

"What?" she asks turning to face me.

"You're right… I'm young, I'm naïve, I don't understand. But if you don't tell me anything, I will never understand! So stop treating me like I'm a burden, because we are the same person!" I say, my voice rising with each word.

A bright, white light appears underneath my feet, and wind blows around my hair. Opening my eyes wide, yellow magic circles appear in them.

"Lucy, calm down, you know what happens when you're mad… come on, I don't like that side of you. I'm sorry, okay? I apologize! Calm down Lucy!" Lucy says shaking my shoulders.

Taking in a deep breath, the bright light disappears.

"You okay now?" Lucy asks me worried.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I just don't like you treating me like I'm not worthy of knowing things" I mumble.

"Hey, cheer up, chin up, okay? We're going to Magnolia okay? Zeref is there and he's looking for us… I think we should give him a warm welcome, don't you think?" Lucy says giving me a small smile.

"Okay" I say.

Following Lucy through the forest, I sigh.

"What's wrong now?" Lucy asks from a few feet ahead of me.

"I was just thinking… Lucy makes strong bonds with everyone, right? Well, wouldn't it make sense that the guild is looking for us right now?"

Lucy stops walking. "What did you say?"

"I was just thinking?"

"No, after that…"

"Lucy makes strong bonds?"

"No, the one after that…"

"Wouldn't it make sense that the guild is looking for us right now?"

"They are, aren't they… come on, we got to go, they're going to get into so much trouble…"Lucy mumbles running forward.

Following after her, I notice that we arrive at the guild. Were we that close? No, we were pretty far… Lucy opened a vortex, didn't she?

Continuing to follow her, I see the entire guild holding hands, slightly glowing from Loki's magic. Were they trying to find us?

"Loki!" Lucy yells running forward tackling him to the ground.

"Lucy?" he asks confused falling to the ground.

"Lucy!" I say marching forward. I pick her up off Loki, and hold her in my arms.

Struggling in my arms, I look over to the rest of the guild who looks confused as to why there are two Lucy's.

"Sorry about her, she's just kind of… anger prone…?" I say giving them a smile.

"Let me go Lucy, I have to punch Loki in the face" Lucy says continuing to struggle.

"No, Lucy… punching good people is bad… that's not… love…" I say dreamily.

Stopping her struggling, Lucy turns her head to face me slightly. "What did I say about that love thing Lucy?" she asks me.

"Oh, sorry, slip of the tongue. You calm now?" I ask still holding onto her.

"No! Loki, come here, bring your face to my fist!" Lucy screams at him.

"Lucy!" I scold.

"Sorry…" she mumbles.

Letting her go, she straightens up and fixes her shirt.

"You calm now?" I ask.

"Yeah, I'm perfectly calm…" As soon as I turn my head to look at the guild, Lucy runs towards Loki. Grabbing the back of her collar so she can't run away, she groans.

"Like I said, sorry about her… If you guys haven't noticed, we're Lucy… well two parts of her. I'm Lucy's kindness, hope, love, faith, some of Lucy's power, and strength. And she's Lucy's hatred, power, strength, battle strategy, revenge, and anger. It's a pleasure to meet you guys! I'm sorry for us interrupting whatever you guys were doing…" I say smiling.

Looking at them, I can tell that they're all very confused.

"You just had to confuse them, didn't you?" Lucy asks me.

"You're the one who ran up and tackled Loki!" I retorted.

"Well it's not my fault you said they were looking for us!"

"I didn't say it, I thought about it!"

"You thought about it out loud!"

"Ugh, you're so annoying!"

"I'm annoying?! You say 'love' every five minutes!"

"Well that's the kind of person I am!"

"Then change it!"

"Then you change yours!" I scream at her.

"No way in hell!"

"Then why do I have to change mine?!"

"Why can't you just agree with me?!"

"Why can't you agree with me?!"

"I'm done with you!" we both say turning our backs on each other.

"Whoa, Lucy, calm down…" Loki says walking up to us.

"Calm down?! Do you not hear how annoying this one is?!" Lucy and I scream at him.

"Hey, who are you calling annoying?!" We both shout at each other.

"That's it!" we both scream.

Holding her hand out, Lucy gains her staff, while I'm fighting with my hands. Concentrating, I can feel my magic running to my hands. Oh, it's on…

"Re-equip: Bow of the Archer!" Lucy chants. A bright glowing light appears in front of her, and as she reaches for it, her outfit begins to change… has she mastered it all ready?

Her normal clothes turn into a green tunic with a cream long sleeve shirt underneath it. Her once blonde hair, is now brown, and is pulled up into a pony tail.

Grabbing a hold of the bow that was floating in front of her, I notice that Lucy has a sheath of arrows on her back.

Growling, I clap my glowing hands together, and create a shockwave of light, directed towards Lucy.

Jumping out of the way and through that air, Lucy shoots multiple arrows at me, which I easily dodge… she's not using her full power…

No, she wouldn't! She wouldn't dare… She's trying to unlock my power… No, I swore to never use it.

_Come on Lucy, how are you going to defeat Zeref if you don't use it? _Lucy says to me telepathically.

_You were just putting on a show…?_

_Of course, Lucy, I would never hurt you… I swore to protect you… remember?_

Smiling, I drop my hands to the side as Lucy lands on the ground, changing back into normal clothes, and her staff disappearing.

Nodding her head slightly, we both begin to glow. Gust of wind form around us, and out of the corner of my eye, I can see the whole guild stand there in shock.

I'm ready for this…

Lucy and I both begin to chant.

"I, the warrior of light, summon the power to defeat the darkness within the world.

Oh, mighty Kareivis, I am the ruler of the Celestials.

Grant the power to find the darkness and destroy it.

Kareivis, give me the strength to protect the one I love, family, friends, the world that shelters me.

Shine!

Sanctum Caeli!"

Rays of light shoot out of Lucy and I; causing everyone in the guild to go wide eyed.

Right before out attacks hit each other, a wall of black smoke shield us from each other.

"Oh no…" I mumble.

"Lucy Heartfilia…" a voice booms.

Turning our heads to the source of the voice, a man walks out from the shadows… Zeref…

"Lucy Heartfilia's…?" He asks confused.

"Zeref…" Lucy and I say crouching down into a fighting position.

"I have a score to settle with you. But first, I must speak with you alone…"

"No way I'm going to let that happen!" Natsu shouts running towards him.

"Natsu!" Lucy screams.

"No!" I scream.

"Fire Dragon's: Iron Fist!"

With a smirk on his face, Zeref flicks his wrist and a black smoke appears around Natsu.

"Natsu!" Lucy screams running forward.

Reaching him just in time, Lucy grabs onto his hand, and pulls him out of the smoke. But Lucy pulls with too much force, and Natsu lands on top of her.

"Ah, young love… I think I'll kill him first!" Zeref says maliciously.

"We are not in love!" Lucy, Natsu, and I scream.

"If you're going to kill him, hell, if you even lay a finger on everyone in this guild, I will kill you, like I was supposed to…" Lucy says standing up.

"Lucy…" I mumble.

"Everyone, stay back, this is between me and him…" Lucy says her back turned to us.

"No! I'm not just going to let you fight him by yourself!" I scream at her. "I won't let you!" I say taking a step forward.

Shooting her hand out to the side, she says "Someone hold onto her… I can't allow her to interfere…"

Turning slightly to me, I can see a tear fall down Lucy's cheek. "I said I'd always protect you… right?"

Grey, coming up from behind me, locks me in his arms. Sobbing like the coward I am, I can't help but feel useless. Even when we were one Lucy, she would always protect me… Her anger, revenge, power, and strength would always protect her guild members, protect me. I'm useless…

_Lucy, don't even think you're useless… because you're not. You're positivity and happiness always kept me going. Lucy, even though we may be different, we are the same. We make one hell of a person, and one hell of a family. You are, and forever will be my little sister. I hope you know that. And if worse comes to worse, Lucy will return to one person, the same way she was before. You will live on, make sure she's okay… protect her Lucy, because you, you can do anything. _Lucy says to me telepathically.

"Lucy!" I scream at her.

**Other Lucy's POV**

Facing directly towards Zeref, I re-equip my staff.

"You really think you can take me down?" Zeref asks amused.

"I know I can…" I sneer at him.

Taking my staff firmly in my hand, I raise it up in the air, a little ball of light appearing on top of it. Slamming my staff towards the ground, it cracks it, and it stands perfectly straight. Creating a light dome around us, I chant. "Survey the Heaven, Open the Heaven.

All the stars, far and wide…

Show me thy appearance…

With such shine,

O Tetrabiblos…

I am ruler of the stars…

Aspect became complete…

Open thy malevolent gate.

O 88 Stars of the Heaven…

Shine!

Urano Metria!"

The spell heads straight towards Zeref, who blocks it with a wall of black smoke.

Growling, my clothes change into a suit and sunglasses, and I can feel my blonde hair turning orange.

"Regulas Impact!" I scream aiming at Zeref's face.

Blocking my attack with one hand, he throws me off to the side.

Walking over to my staff, he pulls it out from the ground, throwing it at my feet. "Is that all you got? If you need some motive, I can always hurt one of your friends…"

That's it… screaming, I run at him, punching him left, right, and center. With one final blow, I send him towards the trees.

Walking over to him as my orange hair shadows my eyes. "Don't you _dare _touch my family. Don't you dare touch my friends… DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH OUR GUILD!"

Changing into my black and white spotted dress, along with my black hair and pig tails, I re-equip my Axe of the Giant Bull.

"This is where it ends… Zeref…" I say darkly, holding my axe out to the side.

Looking slightly afraid, he begins to laugh.

"You fell for it huh?" he asks me.

"Fell for what?" I sneer.

"Lucy Heartfilia, while you were fighting this duplicate of me, I have managed to obtain some friends of yours along with the other you. If you do not come to me, willing to sacrifice yourself, I will kill them all and make you watch" Zeref says.

"You bastard…" I curse.

Damn it… I can't just let those people die… they're my… friends.

"Where are you Zeref?" I ask putting the axe away.

"In my castle, I will tell you the location, but that's it… I give you a week, or I'll kill them."

"You lay a hand on them, and you're dealing with me at my full power…" I sneer.

"I look forward to it" Zeref says fading away in a puff of black smoke.

Taking my staff I walk to the guild… now to find out who's missing.

Once I reach the guild an open the doors, I'm greeted with silence and looks of sorrow. It's quiet here… to quiet.

"Who did he take?" I say my voice rising.

"Mira, Erza, Warren, Grey, Juvia, the other Lucy, Natsu, Happy, Wendy, Carla, Levy, Gajeel, Lisanna, Elfman, Lauxus, and the master…" one of the guild members says to me.

"Shit…" I mumble. "Will you be able to take care of the guild while I'm gone?" I ask them.

"Yes, but please, bring them back" they all plead.

"I will, I give you my word" I say walking out of the guild.

_Sixteen people, sixteen people counting on me. Sixteen people counting on me, the guild, and the world. Zeref, you've gone too far this time. I will kill you even if it costs me my life. Hurt my friends, my family, my guild, the world, you're dealing with me. Zeref, I hope you can hear me, because if you do, I want to let you know that you won't like it when I'm angry. I don't just finish the job; there will be blood, your blood, and lots of it. _I think to myself.

"Lucy!" someone calls from behind me.

Turning around, I see four groups of people standing behind me; Sabertooth, Mermaid Heel, Blue Pegasus, and Lamia Scale.

"If you plan on storming the castle, we thought you would want some help…" Lyon says to me.

"Wait, something's different about this Lucy…" Hibiki says coming up to me. Alright, that's too close. He places a hand on my shoulder, and I punch his stomach, causing him to go unconscious.

"Listen here, you interfere, I will kill you myself. This is between me and Zeref. I know how you guys roll… I know you don't shoot to kill, Lucy has that information from experience, but here's the deal… I am going for blood, and I plan on ending this now. Don't come if you don't want to, I get it, killing people isn't your thing. But when people hurt my guild, my friends, my family, and the world, I go for revenge…" I state turning back around and walking into the forest.

There, that should make it clear.

**Sting's POV**

Wow, Lucy is really pissed off. I've never seen her like this before. Not even in the Grand Magic Games. Something's not right though… she doesn't seem like Lucy. She seems more powerful, angry, and more… vengeful.

Nodding our heads, the rest of Sabertooth run after Lucy. I don't know what it is, but I like this side of her.

I remember when we first heard the news.

_Flashback…_

_"Sabertooth, there has been reports of Zeref attacking Fairy Tail…as we try to redeem ourselves, I have decided that some of you should go and help them defeat him. It will be good for our reputation" the master says to us. _

_"Do we know who he's after, or what he's after?" someone from the guild asks. _

_"It is rumored that he's looking for Lucy Heartfilia… I honestly don't know why, she's a weakling, but I believe we should help them none the less, it will be good for our image…" the master says._

_"Alright!" we all say. _

_End of Flashback…_

As we follow Lucy through the forest, I turn and look behind me, it seems that only Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus has joined us.

_Typical, it's not like girls can defeat Zeref anyways… no offence to Lucy. _I think to myself.

"No offense taken…" she says to me. Did I say that out loud? Oh well…

Running beside her, I look at her face. She seems concentrated and angry, along with hurt and determination. I really admire that about her, she's always smiling, always determined, but like I said, something's different about this Lucy… I haven't seen her crack a smile even once.

Turning to look forward, I notice the sun dance off the leaves of the tree, causing Lucy's hair to shine in the rising sun.

"Lucy?" I ask.

"What?"

"You seem different… are you… okay?" I ask.

"No, I'm not. And I'd rather not talk, it gets me distracted" she mumbles.

"Look, I know we're not friends or anything, but I think talking would help…"

"You wouldn't understand. This is bigger than you…"

"I can at least help" I say continuing to run alongside her.

Lucy stops in her tracks and looks at the floor, her long, blonde hair, casting a shadow across her face.

"Sting Eucliffe, Lucy doesn't have much information about you…"

"What do you mean? Why are you talking to yourself in the third person? Are you actually Lucy?" I ask curiously.

"Oh, right, I guess some explanation is in order…" she says.

Turning to look at Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and the rest of Sabertooth, Lucy tells us to sit down.

"Ah, how do I start…? Okay… I am Lucy, that much is true, but I am not actually her, if that makes any sense. During a mission, the real Lucy died, and her team went back in time to save her, causing there to be two Lucy's. Once we got into the same vicinity of each other, we had different parts of Lucy's personality. The one that was captured, along with other Fairy Tail members is Lucy's kindness, hope, love, faith, some of Lucy's power, and strength. But me, I am much worse; I'm Lucy's hatred, power, strength, battle strategy, revenge, and anger. Alone, we could take down an entire guild, but together we are unstoppable. Lucy, stopped Zeref once by herself, placing him into an eternal jail, but because her team reversed time four times, it caused a rip in the time continuum, causing Zeref to find a way to break out of his prison, also causing there to be two Lucy's. We, well, I have to stop him, or else he will kill Lucy's friends and destroy the world. But that also means there would still be two Lucy's. Unless…" then Lucy stops talking.

Unless? Unless what?

Everyone seems afraid of her, Lucy's still Lucy, whether or not she has a different personality.

"Alright, that's enough!" I scream at them.

They all look confused.

"Listen, Lucy is still Lucy, whether or not she has a different personality. This just means her feelings are stronger. Get a hold of yourselves; she's not going to kill you, God…" I say.

Suddenly, we hear a rustle in the bushes. Turning towards them, men in black surround us.

"Oh, not you again…" Lucy grumbles.

"It's that girl!"

"Quick! We have to get away!"

"Run!"

They all turn around and run, but Lucy appears in front of them. What?! She was just beside me.

"Not so fast…" she demands.

"Ah!" they all scream turning towards us. They're trapped.

"Where do you come from?" Lucy says in a commanding voice.

"Lord – Lord Zeref, he – he told us to come and destroy this group… we – we didn't know you were with them… we're sorry!" one of the people say.

This seems to anger Lucy. "Where is he?!" she booms.

"Uh – uh he's beyond those mountains… please, don't hurt us! We're sorry for what we did last time!"

All the people seem to cower in fear. I was wrong, maybe Lucy is different…

Reaching her hand out to the side, a long, golden, staff appears in her hand. Slamming it into the ground, it cracks and a yellow-tinted dome appears around Lucy and the men in black.

"You dare lie to me?" Lucy booms.

"No! We're sorry!" one of the men screams.

"I know for a fact that you are lying to me. Don't you think I would know where Zeref is? I've been to these mountains before we left. I know he's not there. What I do know, is that he is in this dome, waiting to attack, and I know that none of you are real. So, Zeref, drop the act…" Lucy says annoyed.

"Well done Lucy Heartfilia… I never imagined you would see through my disguise…" one of the men says.

Slowly, one by one, the men disappear, until there's only one man left. Pulling down his cloak, we can all see a man with black hair.

Is _he _Zeref?

"Where are they?" Lucy booms.

"Where are who?" Zeref questions.

"Where are my friends?" Lucy says getting into a fighting position.

"Lucy! You can't do this!" I scream at her.

"What was our deal, Lucy?" Zeref asks her.

Standing up straight, Lucy's hair now covers her eyes. Dropping to one knee, holding her staff in her hand, she looks up at Zeref. "I apologize for the rudeness… Lord Zeref. I come to you begging for forgiveness and I beg of you to let my friends go…" Lucy says. I can tell this is hurting her.

"Oh? And what would I get in return?" He asks walking over to Lucy.

"You… you can take my life…" Lucy says hoarsely.

"Lucy!" Lyon screams running over to the dome, banging on it with his fist.

Rouge, Hibiki, Eve, Ren, Jura, and I run over to the dome and start banging on it as well.

"Lucy! Don't stoop to this level!" Jura yells at her.

"I can take what?" Zeref asks again, teasing us.

"You can take my life, but I want to see my friends safe before you do so" Lucy says confidently.

"Agreed…" Zeref says smirking.

"Lucy!" We all scream.

Suddenly, a blinding light appears behind us. Turning around slowly, we see Mira, Erza, Warren, Grey, Juvia, the other Lucy, Natsu and Happy, Wendy and Carla, Levy, Gajeel, Lisanna, Elfman, Lauxus, and the master.

"Huh? What's going on?" Natsu asks looking around frantically.

"We were just in the dark… why are we in the forest?" Erza asks.

"Sabertooth, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale? What are you all doing here?" Mira asks walking up to us.

Standing up from her knees, Lucy looks at the dome.

"Lucy!" she screams running forward, only to be caught by Jura, trapping her in his arms.

"No! Let me go!" she screams trying to get free.

"Lucy?" Natsu says taking a step forward.

"Sabertooth, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, protect them, do not let them interfere…" the other Lucy says standing up from her kneeling position.

"Who said you can get up?" Zeref asks forcing her back to the ground.

"Lucy!" Natsu and Grey scream running over to the dome.

Rouge and I stop them in their tracks, holding them back.

"Don't…" I say hoarsely.

"You see, they're safe… Now, time to keep your promise…" Zeref says walking towards Lucy.

Standing up again, Lucy holds her staff out to the side. "Who said I'm not going down without a fight?"

"Oh, I see that I've stumbled upon the angry Lucy. That's too bad, I was looking forward to fighting with the kinder one, we all know she's more powerful than you…"

"Is that supposed to make me mad? We all know that the other Lucy is the stronger one, her kindness trumps all, I'm not disputing this. But, we also know that I can be just as strong as her when you hurt her, my family, my friends, and my world. So now, I'm angry…" Lucy says lunging towards Zeref with her staff in the air.

"Lucy!" Grey and Natsu say trying to escape our clutches.

Suddenly, someone darts pasts us and breaks the dome with a punch. Gajeel...

Looking over to Gajeel, Lucy loses her focus, and Zeref attacks her. "Gajeel! What the hell man, why'd you do that?!" Natsu screams at him, trying to break free.

"I had too, there's no way I'm letting Bunny-Girl do this by herself…" He says turning to Zeref.

"This is not your fight Iron Dragon Slayer…" Zeref says sending an attack towards him.

Getting into a fighting stance, Gajeel turns his arm into iron, but something happens, so quickly…

**Gajeel's POV**

As that Zeref guy sends an attack my way, I turn my arm into iron and get into a fighting stance. I'm doing this for Lucy… she was the only one in the guild who truly accepted me when I joined, despite everything I did to her… She's special, and there's no way I'm letting her do this alone.

As the attack rapidly approaches me, I chant "Iron Dragon: -" But I don't get to finish it because Lucy steps in front of me, holding her arms out to the side, creating a shield.

Time starts to move in slow motion as she says to me "Gajeel, despite everything you did in the past, I forgive you. I want you to know that. You are a special friend to me. Thank you for trying to help me, but I can't risk you getting hurt. Protect everyone Gajeel; make sure they'll all be okay. I believe in you, I believe in all of you."

"Lucy!" I scream trying to push her out of the way, but the attack hits her full on.

Once the black light dies down, Lucy slowly falls backward into my arms.

My eyes wide, and my breathing slowed, I can't process what just happened...

Sinking to the ground with Lucy still in my arms, her body starts to glow.

"Lucy!" Natsu screams running over to me.

Turning to look at the other Lucy in Jura's arms, her body's glowing too, but her mouth is moving, like she's chanting something. Both bodies turn red, then yellow, then green, then blue, then pink, then purple, then white.

All of us stare in awe. What's happening?

That's when we all see Zeref back up… is he afraid?

"No!" he screams trying to run away, but he runs into an invisible wall. The Lucy in my arms opens her eyes and gets up, along with the Lucy who managed to get free from Jura's arms. Walking up to the other Lucy, they join hands, and chant a spell we can all hear clearly.

"Lucy! Don't do this, we can find another way!" The master and Lauxus say running towards her.

"Oh stars of the Heavens hear me now in my time of need.

Protect the good, and conceal the evil with your shine.

Take us as a peace offering and destroy the bad.

In the name of the Stars and Spirits we shine.

Signum ad Traiciendum!"

A blinding light appears, hiding both the Lucy's and Zeref from our sight. Shielding our eyes, we have to wait for the light to die down.

Once it does both Lucy's stand there out of breath, still glowing.

Turning to us, they give us a small sad smile as they start to fade away. Turning back into one Lucy, she says "Thank you, everyone for your help and support. I love you all, even the members from the different guilds. You have all helped me to grow, and become the powerful wizard I wanted to be. Thank you for accepting me, and treating me like one of your own. Thank you for protecting me all those times, but you see, I have to protect you, and to do that, I need to go away now… This was always meant to happen, there is no escaping this. Master, I love Fairy Tail, and I hope I will always remain a member…" Lucy says tears falling down her face.

"Lucy, you will always be a member of our guild…" the master says holding up his hand, forming the guild signal.

Lucy, doing the same, starts to disappear more rapidly.

"Lucy!" Natsu screams running towards her.

**Natsu's POV**

"Lucy!" I scream running towards her and grabbing her hand. "Please, don't leave us, don't leave me…"

Putting a hand to my cheek, she replies, "I will always be with you Natsu, just not physically…"

She's not dying… no, she can't be! Stepping out of the way, her body still glowing walks over to the group and says "Thank you all so much, I will never forget you…"

Hugging them all, even the people form the other guilds; she walks back over to me. Facing me, she gives me a small sad smile. Pulling me in for a hug, I just stand there, unable to move, or process what's going on.

Slowly reaching my hands up to her waist, I pull her closer, not wanting to let her go.

"Lucy, please, don't leave, I can't lose you too…" I say into her neck.

"Natsu… don't make this harder on me…" Lucy whispers. Her body shakes violently… is she… crying?

"Lucy, I love you, please, don't go…" I say starting to cry.

"Natsu, I -" she starts, but something happens and I can only feel air in my arms and the smell of cherry blossoms and vanilla disappear into the air.

"Lucy…" I mumble my arms dropping to my side.

Dropping to my knees, my tears start to fall more strongly. As my sobs become more heard, they echo through the forest.

Someone drops to their knees beside me and put a hand on my shoulder. Turning to face them, I see its Grey and Erza, their tears as clear as mine.

One by one, the members of our guild gather around where Lucy stood, building a small shrine.

Sabertooth, the least likely guild that would do something, all gather around Lucy's shrine.

"We're sorry…" Sting says to us. "If we… if we could protect her… If we could've protected her, then she would be here… and we wouldn't feel like this…"

"It's not your fault… we all could have done something more…" Jura says, as Lamia Scale walks up to Lucy's shrine/grave.

"We could've done more too…" Blue Pegasus says walking up to us.

"Lucy… she's always looking at the brighter side, always smiling, always working hard and protecting what she believes in… and now that she's gone… I don't know what to do anymore… I've always looked up to her" Hibiki says.

I can't handle this…

I stand up from my kneeling position and walk away.

First I lost Igneel, next I lost Lisanna, then I met Lucy… Lucy… she always brings a smile to my face. The first time I met her, I didn't mean to save her… I didn't mean to meet anyone like her… I was just looking to find Igneel. But then, I met her, and I knew that there was something different about her. After that moment, when I saved her, I knew – I knew that I always wanted to be there, to protect her. We've gone on so many adventures together.

Stopping in my tracks, I light my hand on fire and punch a tree. "Ah!" I scream.

The tree falls to the ground, and I drop to my knees punching the ground and creating cracks in the earth.

"Natsu?" a soft voice asks behind me.

Turning slightly, I see Lisanna behind me, her arms held behind her back and she's leaning slightly forward.

"Just go away Lisanna… I don't want to talk to anyone right now…" I whisper.

"Natsu, this isn't just hard on you… Everyone else is hurting just as much as you!" Lisanna screams at me.

"What do you know Lisanna? You haven't lost anyone you loved! I lost my father, I lost you, and now, I lost Lucy… I lost the only person I could ever give my whole heart to…"

"Lucy was one of my best friends. She was a sister to me. And I have lost people I loved. I lost my sister, I lost my brother, I lost the guild, I lost you, I lost my parents, and now, I lost Lucy, my sister, my friend, my guild mate…." Lisanna says sitting beside me.

"I – I don't know what to do anymore…" I say crying into Lisanna's shoulder.

"Natsu?" more people say from behind me.

Turning slightly, I see the few members of Fairy Tail. In the dark, I can see the light of tears streaming down all of their faces.

I don't know what to do anymore…

**Lucy's POV**

I wake up in a white room, Zeref lying beside me, unconscious.

Sighing, I get up from my laying position and walk around in the white room. Looking back over to Zeref, I see that he's starting to wake up. Reaching towards my hip, I notice I still have my keys. Thank God… wait, does that mean I'm still alive?

Still looking at Zeref, he puts a hand to his face, and sits up.

Putting his hand down, he looks around the room, his back still facing me.

"I'm all alone again…" he whispers. "She did it didn't she? Lucy trapped me again… and I'm all alone."

"You're not alone, Zeref…" I say sitting down beside him.

"Lucy?" he asks turning towards me.

"Hey…" I mumble.

"So you're stuck in here too, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess we have a lot of time together…"

Pulling my knees up to my chest, I sigh.

"So, Lucy Heartfilia, why did you come with me?" Zeref asks.

"I felt bad the first time I did it… I thought you could use some company."

"But you left all your friends behind, didn't you?"

"It was time for me to go anyways…"

"What do you mean?" he asks curiously.

"I mean, it was time for me to go…"

"Lucy, you aren't making any sense…"

"Zeref, don't worry about it…" I say standing up.

Walking over to a wall, I place my hand on it. "So, this is what you had to deal with all this time?"

"Mostly, yeah…" Zeref says walking beside me.

"I'm sorry…" I mumble. "If I had known this is what it was like, I would've helped you become good… I would have not sent you here…"

"It's not your fault… you didn't know" he mumbles.

"So, how old are you?" I ask him.

"To be honest, I lost count…" he chuckles.

I laugh along with him, but I soon stop. "Why do you do what you do? Why did you resort to darkness?"

"Lucy, I really don't know why. There was just one day when I lost all hope in the world, and I just fell… no one was left to stop me, or help me. So I was falling into darkness… I never thought I would become this way. I just wanted to be good, I didn't want to hurt people, but now, I can't help it. It's like something takes over me, and I can't stop it from happening…" he says as a tear rolls down his face.

I didn't know he had it so tough… I didn't know that this was so hard on him.

"Can I help you?" I ask.

"What?" he croaks out.

"Can I help you? Can I help you be good?"

"You – you would do that?"

"I would never back down on someone who needs help…"

Then, he does something totally unexpected. He hugs me. I'm being hugged by Zeref. I would never expect this from someone who's supposed to be really evil.

Placing my hands on his back, I hug him also. "I'll help you, Zeref. You're not going to be alone again, okay?" I whisper.

"Thank you Lucy…" He hugs me tighter. "Thank you…"

Smiling, I pull away. "Now, let's control that power… okay?"

"Okay" he smiles.

Is this really Zeref? He seems so innocent and carefree… I like this side of him.

**Makarov's POV**

As soon as we walk back into the guild, I escape to my office. Sitting down in my chair, I place my head in my hands.

"Third Master?" a voice says.

Looking up, First Master Mavis is looking at me curiously.

"First Master…" I say hoarsely.

"So, Lucy has chosen to go with Zeref?" she asks sitting down in a chair.

"I don't know why though…" I sigh putting my head back in my hands.

"Lucy feels like she has to do the right thing… if that means spending a life time with that monster, then that's what she has to do…" Mavis says.

"Mavis, why would she choose to go with him though? She has a life here and people that love her…"

"But, she feels bad about sending him there in the first place… no one should be alone Makarov… not even the ones who have been absorbed into darkness…"

"I know… It's just too different without her. She completes the guild Mavis" I say standing up from my chair.

"Makarov, if you really miss her and want her back, there may be a way to do that… But, she may refuse to come back without him" Mavis says.

"She wouldn't leave him behind…" I say.

"She wouldn't…" Mavis agrees.

Lucy is a person who feels that no one should be alone or in pain, and I look up to her for that… But if she thinks she can change someone as cruel as Zeref, that's a whole different story. But still, the guild will never be the same without her. And if Zeref isn't here, we will probably be out of work; all of Fiore would be out of work… that means no money! Wait, what am I thinking?! We need Lucy…

"How do we get her back?" I ask Mavis.

"Someone has to find her, and bring her back"

"Sounds simple…"

"But it's not… In a way, someone has to die, find Lucy and Zeref, and come back to life, bringing them back…"

"Oh…"

"And there's only one person who can do it."

"Don't tell me…"

"Makarov, he's the only one who can bring them back…"

"But… he's not here…"

"Then we will never get them back…"

"Isn't there someone else?!" I ask frantically.

"The only one capable of bringing them back, who isn't him, is Lucy herself…"

"So, either way, we're in a bind…"

"Basically…"

"Can't we just force the prison open?"

"No, Makarov, we can't…"

Groaning, I walk over to the window. "What are we going to do, Mavis?"

"Well, there may be one person who can open it by force…"

"No, he'll destroy the whole world if he does it by force!"

"Makarov, there are only three people who can open it, well maybe four; Mystogen, Edolas Lucy, Natsu, and Grey. Four people Makarov, that's it. And two of them are in Edolas… we only have two options here…"

"So, either way, the council's gonna be on my back?"

"Sorry, those two are our only options…"

Sighing, I walk out to the guild hall, only to be greeted by silence. I guess they all found out. "Natsu, Grey, in my office please…" I say.

Everyone looks up at me and shakes their heads. "They aren't here master…"

"Where are they?" I ask.

"We don't know… they didn't show up with the rest of you…"

"Erza, go find them please…" I say to her.

"Yes master…" she mumbles walking out of the guild with her head hung low.

So this is what it will be like without Lucy? We have no choice… we **_must _**get her back!

**Erza's POV**

Walking out of the guild, I try to find Grey and Natsu… where could they be?

I know it's hard on them, it's hard on all of us, but I think they're taking it the worst…

Grey was Lucy's big brother. He loved her, and would protect her from everything…

But Natsu, Natsu loved her with everything that he is… he's dying without her. It's like his whole world has come crashing down. The way he talks about her when she's not around, the way he needs to be at her house every night just to make sure she's okay, the way he teases her about everything. The way he saves her, shows how much he cares. I knew Natsu loved her even before he did. They're meant for each other, and now that Lucy's gone… I don't know what's going to happen to him.

Walking down the road to Lucy's apartment, I see two figures on the roof. I found them. Deciding not to go up yet, I hear a bit of their conversation.

"I can't believe she's gone Grey…" Natsu says.

"I can't either, Natsu. Life doesn't feel the same without her…" Grey says sighing.

Did they both just use their real names? The world has come crashing down…

"Grey, do you think Lucy loved me?" Natsu says quietly, like he's afraid of knowing the answer.

"Natsu, I think you need to ask yourself that… But here's what I'll say, from what I could tell, Lucy adored you. Whenever she was in trouble, she would only call out for you, because she only wanted you to save her. Natsu, you were like her knight in shining armor. You saved her Natsu…"

"You think so?" Natsu mumbles.

"I know so…" Grey says.

Jumping up onto the roof and taking a seat beside Natsu, I say "The world's different now… don't you think?"

"It feels incomplete…" Grey says sighing.

"Nothing will be the same…" Natsu says hoarsely.

"The master wants to see you two…" I say pulling my knees up to my chest. For once, I'm not wearing my armor. It seems pointless to have it if I can't be strong, if I can't protect the people I love.

"I don't want to see him right now…" Natsu sighs. "I don't want to see anyone right now… not unless they're Lucy…" he says. "Well, maybe you two…" he adds quickly onto the end.

"Good save there, Natsu…" Grey says.

"I thought I would find you here…" someone says from behind us. Turning around slowly, I see Gajeel, Lily, Wendy, Carla, and Happy.

All walking towards us, they take a seat beside us.

"You're right… nothing feels the same with Bun – I mean Lucy…"

Gajeel didn't call Lucy Bunny-Girl, or Cheerleader. The world really is different now…

"I miss her…" Wendy cries into her knees.

"We all do…" Carla replies trying to get Wendy calm.

Looking over to Natsu, I can see tears stream down his face, but his body lights on fire… causing us all to shift over a couple places.

"Flames of emotion…" I mumble. These seem brighter than the ones he usually has. Does this mean he's in more pain, or feels an exceptional amount of sadness?

Shifting back towards Natsu, I re-equip into my Flame Empress armor and place my head on his shoulder… his fire doesn't burn me…

"I'm sorry…" I mumble.

"It's not your fault… you didn't kill her…" Natsu mumbles.

"No, but I could've done something… I just stood there watching it happen…"

"So did I…" he mumbles.

"I think you should go talk to the master… he said he needs to talk to you and Grey… it could be really important…" I say still resting my head on his shoulder, slightly hugging him.

"Yeah, Natsu, I think we should go…" Grey says shifting closer to Natsu.

"Okay, but if anyone tries to pity me, outside of this group, I'm never going back to the guild…" he mumbles.

"Natsu, they're all feeling pain right now… they'll pity you at first, because you truly loved her… and now…"

"Let's go..." Natsu mumbles getting up.

Jumping down from the roof, I sigh; I really shouldn't have said that…

**Natsu's POV**

Walking back to the guild, my mind wanders to Lucy. Her smile, her eyes, her scent, her laugh, her positivity, the way she would use her 'Lucy Kick'… I really miss her, probably more than anyone. When she disappeared in my arms, it feels like my heart was ripped in two, and now everyone is trying to tape it back together. It won't work… I'm broken beyond repair. Nothing can fix me, nothing.

Opening the doors to the guild, I ignore everyone around me, and walk straight up to Gramps' office. Knocking on the door, I don't bother waiting for it to open; I open it myself and head straight for a chair.

"Where's Grey?" Gramps asks me once I fully sit down.

"I'm here…" Grey mumbles from the doorway.

Closing it behind him, he sits down in the chair next to mine, and as both of our eyes are hidden by shadows, we stare at the floor.

"I have news…" Gramps says to us.

"About what?" Grey asks.

"There may be a way to get Lucy back…"

This gains my attention. Jumping up from the chair, I slam my hands onto his desk. "How… How do we get her back?" I ask.

"There may be a way to force open the prison that holds Lucy and Zeref captive, but the problem is, Lucy might not leave without him…" Gramps says to me.

"What do you mean?" Grey asks.

"The only reason Lucy is in there with Zeref, is because of two reasons, one, Zeref could have grabbed hold of her when he disappeared, and/or two, Lucy doesn't want to leave Zeref there alone… even though he's pure evil, Lucy believes that no one should be left alone, that no one should suffer by themselves."

"So, Lucy's in there because she wants to help Zeref? He almost killed her!" I scream.

"Natsu, what Lucy does, is her decision… for some strange reason; Lucy believes that there is still some good left in him…" Gramps says.

"How do we get her back?" Grey asks.

"We can force open the prison, but the thing is, you two have to die, and then be brought back to life, bringing Lucy, and maybe Zeref back…"

"But, why would we bring him back? He's just going to mess up the world again!" Grey exclaims jumping out of his chair.

"Grey, she may only come back if you bring Zeref. She believes that no one should be alone, even if their heart has been blinded by the darkness…" Gramps says to him.

"So, there's a chance we can get her back?" I ask hopeful.

"Yes" Gramps says leaning back in his large chair.

"Well, then what are we waiting for?! Let's get her back!" I scream.

"Natsu, you can't just go and kill yourself… there's a special way you have to do it. First, take these pills…" Gramps says handing each of us two red pills.

Swallowing them, we look towards Gramps.

"Follow me" he says walking out of the office and down into the main room of the guild hall.

Following Gramps into the main guild hall, I see that it's completely emptied, and the only light illuminating the room, is from a few lit candles hanging on the walls.

"Mira, has everything been arranged?" Gramps asks.

Mira, transformed into her Satan Soul, walks up to us. "Yes Master, all they have to do is lay in the center of the magic circle, there, they will die and travel to Lucy's location. They have a time limit of an hour. Have they taken the pill yet?" Mira says in her demonic voice.

"They've taken it…" Gramps replies.

"Good, now, Natsu, Grey, follow me" Mira says.

Obeying her orders because they don't want to make Mira angry, they follow her into the middle of the giant purple magic circle. "Lay down…" Mira tells us.

Lying down in the middle, Mira leaves us and walks up to the second floor, where a black ball of light appears in her hands.

"This will only hurt for a second. You have an hour, please, bring Lucy back, at any cost…" Mira tells us.

Shooting the black beam of light towards Grey and I, we both scream in pain as soon as it hits us.

"Sorry!" Mira says screaming over our screams.

Arching my back, I keep screaming in pain. "Mira, make it stop!" I yell at her.

"I can't Natsu! I'm so sorry" Mira says continuing to shoot the back beam at us.

I can hear Grey's screaming stop. As I slowly shift my paining head, I see that his body has gone limp, and blood is still pouring out of his mouth.

"Grey" I say weakly as I'm still being shot by Mira's black beam.

When he doesn't answer, I know he's either unconscious, or dead. Hopefully he's dead… Not in the bad way of course, but if he is dead, he's being transported to Lucy.

"Mira, you have to do much more than what you're doing… I'm still alive!" I scream at her.

"O-Okay Natsu" Mira says nervously.

Sending a more powerful shot at me, I scream in so much pain. Everything hurts… everything hurts… but I have to get to Lucy…

I close my eyes, and a white light appears behind them… I'm coming Lucy…

**Lucy's POV**

"See, that wasn't so hard, was it?" I say nudging Zeref's shoulder.

"No, it wasn't that bad" Zeref says laughing.

"Good… because we're moving on!" I say giving him a thumbs up.

"What?" Zeref says nervously.

"Shoot me" I say boldly.

"What...?! Lucy, no way!" he screams at me.

"Zeref, shoot me, I trust you… give me everything you got!" I scream at him.

Standing with my back to the wall of the extremely white, extremely empty room, I spread my arms out wide. "Hit me" I command.

I watch him sink to his knees and put his head in his hands. "Lucy, I can't!" he screams.

Sighing, I drop my arms to the side. Walking forward and dropping to my knees as well, I place a hand on his shoulder. "Zeref, there is no need to be afraid. I trust you. You've made progress. I trust you not to kill me. If you can strike me without hurting me, it can show you that you don't always have to hurt people…"

"Lucy, I can't, I'm evil, my heart's black, and there is no chance of me seeing the light. You can try all you want, but nothing will change…" Zeref says dropping his arms from his face.

"Zeref… don't you dare say that you can't change. You won't change unless you are willing to. After all we've said, after all we've been through, do you not trust me enough to listen to me when I say that you have light in your heart, you just have to take a chance and reach out to it… I believe in you. If you can't find the light inside yourself, then no one can" I say standing up and walking back over to the wall.

"Hit me" I command.

"Lucy…" Zeref says warningly.

"Hit Me" I command.

"No!"

"HIT ME!" I boom.

Screaming at me, Zeref raises a hand and shoots a black beam of light towards me. Hitting me in the stomach, I fly off to the side, and roll a couple times.

"Lucy! No, no, no, no. I'm so sorry… you aggravated me… please, say something, come on!" Zeref says shaking me a little.

"See?" I breathe out. "I trust you… You didn't kill me, and that was a full on attack…"

"Oh my God, never make me do that again!" Zeref says pulling me into his arms.

"But nothing happened… I trusted you, and you sent a full on attack towards me. You didn't kill me Zeref, there is light in your heart… you just proved it" I say smiling at him.

Laughing, Zeref hugs me tighter. "I trust you too, Lucy. Thanks for everything…" he says to me.

"No problem" I say standing back up.

"Now… let's go again!" I say.

Zeref stands up and holds out his hand to me.

Suddenly, a blinding light appears in front of me and Zeref. Confused, we both take a step forward, and when the light dies down, I see the lifeless figures of Natsu and Grey.

"What…?!" I exclaim in shock.

Dropping to the ground beside them, I shake them lightly. "Natsu, Grey? Wake up!" I mumble.

Both of them simultaneously open their eyes and take a deep breath in. Both catching sight of me, they jump up and tackle me to the ground. "Lucy!" they both scream.

"Uh…" I say confused.

"We missed you!" they both scream.

"Uh, how'd you guys get here...?" I ask confused.

"Oh, we died…" Natsu says casually.

"YOU WHAT…?! HOW ON EARTH DID YOU DIE?! WHAT HAPPENED?! DID YOU GUYS KILL YOUSELVES JUST TO GET HERE? WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT…?" Zeref and I scream at them.

"You…" Natsu says lighting his fist on fire and running towards Zeref. Punching him in the face, Zeref falls to the ground and puts up his hands defensively.

"What… you're not going to fight back?" Natsu asks dumbfounded.

"No… I –I'm not, I don't want to hurt my friends…" Zeref mumbles.

"You don't want to hurt your friends? Funny, I don't see any here…" Natsu snarls at Zeref, getting ready for another punch.

Natsu pulls his arm back and aims for Zeref's face, but I manage to grab a hold of Natsu's flaming hand, which burns me on contact. Hissing in pain, I clutch it to my chest.

"Lucy… why would you do that?!" Natsu screams at me. "Are you okay?" he then asks.

"I'm fine, but I would appreciate it if you didn't just go and punch my friends…" I say to him.

"Here, Lucy, let me help you…" Grey says taking hold of my hand.

Putting some ice on it, the burn seems to cool down. Sighing in relief, I look back to Natsu. "What are you guys doing here?" I ask.

"We're here to bring you back!" Natsu says with a big grin.

"Bring me back…? But, I can't just leave Zeref here, I promised I wouldn't leave him alone…" I say taking a step away from them.

"Lucy, it's okay, you need to be with your friends… they need you… go with them, I'll be okay…" Zeref says gripping my shoulders.

Taking a step away from him, I shake my head. "No, I can't just leave you. I promised, and I never break promises. I'm staying here with you… I can't just leave you here like I did before. No one should be alone Zeref… no one…"

"Lucy, please, go with your friends… I'll be okay!" Zeref says smiling at me.

"He can always come back with us…" Grey mumbles.

"Grey, shut up!" Natsu snaps at him.

"He can?" I ask happily.

"Yeah" Grey says.

"Zeref, you can come with us! You can join Fairy Tail; become the person you want to be… please, come with me…" I plead.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea, Lucy… I mean, I almost killed everyone… three times…" Zeref says ashamed with himself.

**Grey's POV**

Is this really Zeref? He seems like a nice guy, you know, when he's not trying to destroy the world…

Suddenly, something daws on me… our time limit!

I look down at my hands to slowly see them fading away… no!

"Lucy, if you want to come back, then we have to leave now!" I yell at her.

She looks over to Zeref who sighs. "Fine, I'll come with you…" he mumbles.

Smiling, Lucy and Zeref walk over to us. Grabbing a hold of our hands, Lucy and Zeref smile at us, and then at each other.

Continuing to slowly disappear, I see that Lucy leans over to Zeref and whispers something in his ear. Unable to hear it, I look over to Natsu who just shrugs his shoulders.

Looking back over to Lucy and Zeref, I can see that his eyes widen in shock, and he looks at Lucy, who nods her head. Shaking his head rapidly, Lucy sighs.

I'm about to as her what happened, but we are soon engulfed in a blinding white light, and we disappear from the white room.

Re-appearing in the guild, Natsu, Zeref, and I are standing up straight, but Lucy, wobbles and drops to her knees.

"Lucy!" Zeref, Natsu, and I scream.

She fully drops on the floor and he face contorts in pain. Natsu is the first one to get to her, so he quickly sits her up in his lap, he head resting on her shoulder.

Zeref crouches down to Lucy's eyes level and pulls her into a hug, which earns him a growl from Natsu.

"Lucy, I am so sorry…" we both hear Zeref mumble.

He's sorry, what on Earthland could he be sorry for now?!

"It's not your fault…" Lucy mumbles quietly.

"Hey Luce, you okay?" Natsu asks shifting her in his lap.

"No, not really…" she mumbles.

"What's wrong?" Natsu asks worriedly, his voice cracking.

"I should've known this would happen in the real world… I should have just stayed in that room and you could've taken Zeref with you…"

"Lucy, we wouldn't leave you behind like that!" I scream at her.

"Is there any way to send her back?!" Zeref asks frantically.

"Why would you send her back…?" Natsu shouts at Zeref.

"Because you idiot, if she's here, then she's going to die! She died in the real world, and just being in that room paused the death process… now that she's back, she's going to die all over again!" Zeref shouts back at Natsu.

"What?!" Natsu screams starting to freak out.

"Can we stop it from happening?" I ask quickly.

"No, you can't escape the inevitable…" Zeref mumbles as he runs a hand through his black hair.

"So, either Lucy dies, or we find a way to send her back to that room…" Natsu mumbles tightening his grip on Lucy.

"Yes…" Zeref says sadly.

"Actually…" another voice butts into our conversation.

Appearing from the shadows, we see the master, Gajeel, Erza, Wendy, Happy, Carla, and Lily.

"What do you mean by 'actually'?" I say questioning Gramps.

"I mean, you could always use Horologium to go back in time and stop yourselves from ever taking that job" he explains.

"So, we can have another second chance?" Natsu says still holding onto Lucy.

"Yes… but, this time, I want all of you to go, including you Zeref, it seems that you have made a strong bond with Lucy that I think she should keep, you can join our guild. I don't know if people will accept it at first, but, you could at least try…" Gramps says.

Looking over to Zeref, I see him smile softy. Looking down to the ground, he says "I would like that very much…"

"Excellent, now, the nine of you must travel with Horologium back in time to save Lucy, and yourselves" Gramps says.

"Great idea master, only one problem, we can't get Horologium here without Loki" Erza says crossing her arms.

"No, I still have a little bit of magic in me… Let's do this" Lucy says hoarsely as she tries to stand up form Natsu's lap.

"Lucy, don't do this…" Natsu says trying to pull her back down, but she ignores him and pulls out one of her silver keys.

"Open, Gate of the Clock Constellation, Horologium!" Lucy chants falling to her knees and taking deep breaths in.

"Lucy!" we all scream rushing over to her.

"Horologium, take them back in time… please, before… before your gate closes…" Lucy says panting.

"Yes, Lucy" Horologium says determined. "Please, grab a hold on my hands… we must go quickly!" Horologium says.

**Natsu's POV**

"We'll make everything right, Lucy, I promise" I say crouching down to her eye level.

"I'm ho-holding you to that" she says sounding really tired.

"Natsu, come on, we have to go!" someone screams at me.

Looking back towards all my friends who have gathered around Horologium, I look back to Lucy with a smile on my face. Cupping the side of her face with one of my hands, I place my forehead on hers. Smiling, I say "Lucy, you can always count on me…"

"I know" she says placing a shaky hand on my face.

"I love you Lucy… I promise that I will always protect you. I promise that nothing bad will happen to you while I'm around. I love you so much" I whisper to her, kissing her forehead.

"I love you too Natsu, always have, always will… now, go save me from dying…" she says chuckling.

My face brightens as soon as she says that. Lucy loves me… she loves me! Placing my other hand on the side of her face, I kiss her. I've wanted to do this for so long. Kissing me back, I can feel Lucy smile against my lips.

"Natsu… hurry! You can kiss Lucy later!" Erza shouts at me. Pulling away and blushing slightly, I kiss Lucy's lips one more time.

"I'll be seeing you real soon!" I say to her, grabbing onto one of Horologium's hands.

"I love you!" Lucy calls out as we start to disappear.

"I love you too!" I call back before fully disappearing.

I love her… I have always loved her.

Opening my eyes, I look around me. We're back at the guild… the same day Grey chooses the request.

Grey seems to notice it too, because he looks down at the paper he's holding… the job request. "Ah!" he screams letting the paper lifelessly fall onto the table.

"Natsu! Destroy it!" Erza and Grey yell at me.

Nodding my head, I light the paper on fire.

"Natsu, what are you doing?! Grey just chose the job, he was just reading it!" Lucy says from beside me.

Turning my head slowly, I see the confused look on Lucy's face. Her big brown eyes, full lips, blonde hair that looks like strands of pure gold, resting on top of her head.

"Lucy!" Grey, Erza, Happy, and I scream tackling her into a hug, gaining confused looks from all the guild members.

"Guys… what's with you… it's like I died and suddenly came back to life!" Lucy says throwing her arms up into the air.

"You have no idea…" we all mumble.

"What?" Lucy asks confused.

"Nothing!" we all scream.

"Okay… look, I'm going to go home… so as soon as you guys start to act normal, come find me" Lucy says picking up her books from the table and starts to walk out of the guild. This is my chance…

"Go get her Flame Brain…" Grey says smirking at me.

"We're all rooting for you" Erza says stuffing some strawberry cheesecake into her mouth… where did that come from anyways?

Smiling at my team, I jump up from my chair at the table, and run after Lucy, shouting her name.

When I see her walking along the side of the river, holding Plue in her arms, I scream her name again. This causes her to turn around too quickly and fall into the water, banging her head on the stone wall as she does so… crap!

Jumping in after her, I manage to grab a hold of her waist, and carry her up to the stone wall again, where I hoist both me and her up to dry land.

Laying her down on the stone road, I look at her worriedly.

"Lucy…" I call softly.

Nothing…

"Lucy" I call again.

Silence…

"Lucy!" I scream starting to panic.

Nothing… crap, I killed her…

Oh, wait, what's that thing you do to save someone...? Oh, I know!

Leaning down and pinching her nose, I place my lips on hers, and breathe air into her mouth and lungs. After doing this a couple times, Lucy starts to cough. "Lucy!" I exclaim.

Turning onto the side, Lucy continues to cough. "Ow…" she mumbles.

Tackling her and hugging her refusing to let go, I smile… I saved her… I saved Lucy, and now, there's no way I'm ever putting her in danger ever again.

"Natsu, what happened? Why are you hugging me?" Lucy questions.

Helping her stand on her feet, I look down into her large brown eyes. "I saved you… that's what happened, and I'm always going to save you…" I say leaning down slightly and wrapping my arms around her body.

Slowly hugging back, Lucy places her head on my chest. "Thanks Natsu, for you know, always saving me, and being there for me…" Lucy says.

"No need to thank me Luce, I'll always save you. I'll always protect you, I'll always be there for you… you know why?" I say.

"No, why?" she asks curiously.

"Because I love you Luce, I always have, and I always will… When I first met you, I was so focused on finding my dad, that I didn't notice how truly beautiful you were, how strong you were, the way you talked about Fairy Tail. Lucy, I only noticed how amazing you were as we went on more and more jobs, and I never had a chance to talk to you because something would always happen. I watched you go through the happiest, sad, and most angry times, but you always had a smile on your face. You are definitely the strongest member in Fairy Tail, because you always know how to keep going when others can't. Lucy, you make strong connections with everyone, everywhere you go, you can find the light in people that had died down, and you never give up on those around you. Lucy, I love you, and I have loved you since the moment when we first met. You know, when I talked to Mira about the fake Salamander, and the charm spell, you know what she told me? She told me that people can only be broken from the spell by true love, so there's your proof Lucy. I love you, and I will always love you." I say taking a hold of her chin and tilting her head up towards me.

Smiling at her, she smiles back… I love this girl with all my heart…

Leaning down, I softly press my lips onto hers. Wrapping her arms around my neck, I place my hands on her waist. This is what it's meant to be like… we fit perfectly together… the way her body fits into mine…

"I love you too Natsu…" Lucy says placing her forehead on mine. Smiling, I lift her up and spin her around in circles.

Kissing her again, I can't keep the smile off of my face. She's the one for me, the one I will gladly spend the rest of my life with, the one I will marry someday.

I know I'm not perfect, no one is, but because I now have Lucy, I don't have to be perfect, because she loves me just the way I am. I'm lucky to have her. I'm lucky to have my guild, my family, my friends, and in this moment everything is perfect.

Sitting down beside Lucy in front of her house by the river, she leans her head onto my shoulder, and I lean my head on hers.

Smiling, I mumble "I'm glad I got a second chance…"

"What?" Lucy asks.

"Don't worry about it" I say wrapping an arm around her.

Yup, I'm glad I got a second chance… and I'll make sure to never waste another moment of it.

**EPILOUGE**

"Sorry I'm late, Natsu!" Lucy says running up to me.

Nodding my head, I turn and look at the Rainbow Cherry Blossom lit up beside me. I remember when I dug this one up for Lucy when she was sick and couldn't come… smiling a little at the thought, I'm interrupted by Lucy.

"Hey, you okay?" she asks nudging my arm.

"Yeah, I'm fine…" I mumble. "Lucy… we need to talk"

"A-about what?" she asks nervously.

"Lucy, it's been six years since we started dating, and I've loved every minute of it. You are my world, and I would do anything for you. You make me smile just by hearing you voice. Your smell is something I want to have around me every moment of every day. I love the way your eyes shine when you get excited about something, or when you're laughing. Lucy, I'm not very good at confessions, and I'm so afraid that you think I'm making a fool of myself when I'm doing this. But Lucy, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. So, Lucy Heartfilia" I say digging into my pocket. Pulling out a black velvet box, I get down on one knee. Taking a hold of her hand, I look into her big brown eyes, which are flashing with confusion, happiness, shock, and love. "Lucy Heartfilia, will you marry me?"

"Of course you idiot!" Lucy says tackling me to the ground.

Kissing me, I laugh and roll over so I'm on top. Taking a hold of her hand, I slip the ring on her finger. Gasping, Lucy looks up at me, with a huge smile on her face.

"Natsu Dragneel, I loved you since our first mission together. I showed me how much you cared about your friends, and how much you're willing to risk for them. From that point on, my love for you only grew stronger" Lucy says as a tear falls down her face. "You, along with everyone in this room, saved me countless times, but you, Natsu; you were the one I thought of when I was afraid. You always gave me hope and the strength to carry on. I love you, and everything about you. I love how you stick up for your friends, I love how you get easily excited, and I love how you complain about transportation" this gets a few laughs from the crowd. "Natsu, you make every day an adventure, and I'm glad that I get to go through it with you…"

"Lucy Heartfilia, I loved you way before our first mission together…" I start.

"Oh, trying to out due me?" she says cutting me off. I chuckle and shake my head.

"As I was saying… I loved you way before our first mission together, and I have loved you every day after that, my love never stopped growing. Lucy, you make me laugh, and smile, and you are so annoying, but that's what I love about you. You are passionate about everything you do, and that passion never leaves. Lucy, you are one in a million, and I am so happy that you are mine. Lucy, as I said before and I will say again, I will always save you, and you will always save me. Your voice, your laughter, your smile, that gets me out of bed in the morning, hell, even your Lucy Kick doesn't do the trick… it has to be your voice. Lucy, you are so special, and I never want you to think otherwise. I love you with everything I am and everything I could be…"

She smiles at me as tears of joy run down her face.

"Do you have the rings?" Gramps asks us.

"Yes" Lucy and I say smiling.

"Lucy, repeat after me… I, Lucy Heartfilia…"

"I, Lucy Heartfilia"

"Take you Natsu Dragneel"

"Take you Natsu Dragneel"

"To be my lawfully wedded husband…"

"To be my lawfully wedded husband…"

"In sickness and in health"

"In sickness and in health"

"The good times and the bad"

"The good times and the bad"

"Until death do we part."

"Until death do we part"

Taking the ring from Erza, her maid of honour, Lucy slips the ring onto my finger.

"Natsu, repeat after me… I, Natsu Dragneel…" Gramps says.

"I, Natsu Dragneel"

"Take you Lucy Heartfilia"

"Take you Lucy Heartfilia"

"To be my lawfully wedded wife"

"To be my lawfully wedded wife"

"In sickness and in health"

"In sickness and in health"

"The good times and the bad"

"The good times and the bad"

"Until death do we part"

"Until death do we part"

Taking the ring from Grey, my best man, I smile broadly at Lucy as I slip her ring onto her finger.

"Hereby and henceforth, by the land of Magnolia, I announce you husband and wife… you may kiss your bride…" Gramps says to me.

"Gladly" I mumble.

Taking Lucy's hands, I look at her with a large smile on my face.

Her dress, a long white, strapless gown, fits her perfectly. She's looks like a princess, one who stepped out of a Fairy Tale wedding. Her long blonde hair is put up, bus cascades down her back in curls. She looks beyond beautiful, stunning actually. I will never forget this moment.

Placing a hand on her beautiful, soft, face, I slip it behind her neck and pull her closer to me.

Kissing her passionately, I make sure to fill this kiss with everything I'm feeling; joy, extreme happiness, thankfulness, love, passion, lust, trust, hope, faith, and so many more.

Pulling away a minute later, loud clapping and cheering erupts through the church. Grabbing onto Lucy's hand, I run with her in two, outside the church, and down the streets of Magnolia.

We hear congratulation from many strangers as we run towards the guild. Entering, I pull her into the middle of the guild, where I take both of her hands in mine.

"Lucy Dragneel, you have made me that happiest man in the world…" I state.

"Natsu Dragneel, the feeling is mutual" Lucy says giving me a peck on the lips.

Smiling, I step away from her. "I have a present for you…"

"As do I…" Lucy says.

Cupping my hands together, I focus all of my flames into my hands. "Lucy, when I was away on one of my jobs, I learned something really amazing… my flames of emotion, you know, the one's I get when I'm really angry? Well, they can change colour depending on the emotion I feel. When the rose turns blue, it means I'm sad, when it turns yellow, it means I'm happy, when it turns pink, it means I love you, when it turns red, it means that I'm angry, when it turns purple, it means I'm thinking of you, and when it turns white, it means I'm a combination of happy, love, and thinking of you. I am able to make it special, so it will always be on fire, but it will never hurt you, or burn the whole place down. This way, you know what I'm feeling when I can't express it, and always know that I'm thinking of you." I say handing her the rose.

Smiling, Lucy takes it and holds it in her hands.

"Natsu, I have two presents for you…"

"Two! Now you're making me feel bad…" I say.

Laughing, Lucy puts a hand on my face.

"For the first present…" Lucy starts.

Also cupping her hands together, she concentrates all of her magic into her hands. When they come apart, a chain with a red dragon at the end of it lays in her hands. Putting it around my neck, she says "Just like your rose, this dragon changes colour. When it's red, it means love, when it's blue, it means sad, yellow mean happy, when it's pink, it means I'm thinking of you, and when it's white, it means happy, love, and I'm thinking of you…"

"And for the second present…" Lucy says pecking my lips.

"I'm pregnant…" she says smiling.

"You're WHAT?!" some people scream from beside us.

Slowly turning our heads, we see that the entire guild is standing there with faces filled with shock, happiness, and joy.

Lucy, blushing furiously, stares wide-eyed… but I begin to laugh. Picking her up and spinning her around in my arms… I repeat 'I love you!' over and over again.

"We're going to have a family!" I cheer once I put her down.

Laughing together, we spend the night, partying, opening presents, and being with our family and friends.

"Nala, Luke, come on, you have training to do!" I say calling the twins.

"Coming Dad!" the twins call back.

Already at the age of ten, I watch my two precious kids practice their magic.

Nala, the youngest by two minutes, has Lucy's long blonde hair, but my onyx eyes, along with the biggest smile anyone can have.

Luke has my salmon hair and Lucy's brown eyes… he doesn't smile as much as Nala, but when he does, he lights up the entire room.

Nala, an ice mage, starts practicing on a dummy in the training room in Lucy's mansion, which she was able to buy back after saving so much money. I don't know Nala is an ice mage… probably got the interest from Grey…

Luke, practicing his crash magic, after watching Gildarts be totally awesome, destroys the wall. Sighing, I go walk over to him.

"Luke, that was awesome!" I say giving him a thumbs up.

"Mom's going to kill me…" he mutters.

"Go run; I talk to your mom…" I say ruffling his hair.

"Thanks Dad!" Luke says running through the wall. Suddenly, I hear someone sigh behind me. Turning around slowly, I see Lucy with her hands on her hips.

"You know, I think it would be best if Luke uses his crash magic outside…" she mumbles.

"Dad, Mom! Did you just see that?! I mastered Ice Make: Lance! I have to go and tell Uncle Grey!" Nala squeals.

"Nala, that was amazing honey, I'm so proud of you!" Lucy says crouching down and giving Nala a big hug.

"Hey mom, Uncle Zeref's here…" Luke says coming in through the hole he created.

"Awesome, let's go say hi, shall we?" Lucy says grabbing my hand along with Nala's.

Walking through the hole Luke created in the wall, he grabs onto my hand, and as one big happy family, we walk down the hallways to see our friend.

I really don't know how anything could get any better. I have my friends, my guild, my kids, and Lucy.

All because of that second chance, I get to live life to the fullest, I get to have the family I always wanted, and I get to be with the people I love.

So, if I learned anything, it's that if you get a second chance… use it, and make the world the wa you want it to be…

**WHAT HAPPENED TO THE OTHERS?**

Grey finally confessed his love for Juvia. They got married a year after Lucy and Natsu, and now have a kid names James, who's a fire wizard. They all wonder who he takes after…

Gajeel, finally manning up, asked Levy out on a date. They've been dating ever since Natsu and Lucy's wedding, and they're still going strong.

Cana and Gildarts decided it would be better for their father-daughter relationship if they actually started acting like a father and daughter. Once a month, they get together and spend the day catching up and doing family type things.

Erza, bumping into Jellal on a job, now spends her days talking to him over thought lacrima, and catching up with the boy she once knew. Jellal, finally manning up and asking her out, they plan their three month anniversary.

Makarov, finally deciding to retire, handed the guild over to Natsu and Lucy, who both became the seventh masters of Fairy Tail. Makarov is still around the guild, helping to make decisions, helping with paperwork, and watching over the guild when Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Grey, and Happy, want to go on a mission. He also acts as a babysitter for Natsu and Lucy's kids when they go out of town for council meetings.

Zeref, who recently joined the guild, is one of the most liked members. Apparently, everyone likes him when you know; he's trying to destroy humanity as we know it. Zeref, as one of the godparents of Nala and Luke, tells them about his adventures, and entertains them with magi every so often. Sometimes, he thinks back to when he and Lucy were in that white room. She changed him, she saw the good in him when no one else could, and now, his smile can brighten up a darkened room, lift the spirits of many, and bring joy to the people around him.

Wendy, now dating Romeo, spends her days getting stronger, and working hard to beat Romeo at their upcoming weekly battle. Romeo admits his love for her every day, and just like Natsu, vows to protect her from anything, to always be there for her, and support her no matter what.

Natsu has now become one of the most powerful wizards in Fiore, along with Lucy that is. He often brags about it to Grey, who just punches him in the face, but none the less, Grey's happy for his friend.

Lucy, the second most powerful wizard in Fiore, right after Natsu, spends her days with her husband, watching over the guild, playing with her children, and protecting her friends and family.

**And they wouldn't want it any other way…**

**The End**


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